08/20/2003 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION AUGUST 20, 2003 APPROVED 1 Public Services Director DeGardner stated he would work with Al Brixius and City staff • 2 to determine if the park fees should be increased at this time. 3 4 BRUGGEMAN DEVELOPMENT PARK DISCUSSION, MICHAEL GROCHALA 5 AND JEFF SMYSER 6 7 City Planner Smyser distributed a memo regarding the Bruggemarr Development park 8 issue. The park dedication issue has yet to be resolved and staff is looking for Council 9 direction. The two questions are if the park area should be public or private and how 10 much park dedication credit should be given to the developer. 11 12 City Planner Smyser reviewed the background of the development and park plan. He 13 indicated the Park Board recommended the park area be private, with an undetermined 14 credit for it. The Planning and Zoning Board recommended the park be public, with 15 credit to be determined by the City Council. Staff is recommending the park be private 16 because it is not designed in a way that is suitable for use by the public. 17 18 City Planner Smyser advised the project is scheduled for the September 8 Council 19 meeting. The report, including a park recommendation, will be completed for the 20 September 3 Council work session. 21 22 City Planner Smyser noted that attached to the memo is a cost estimate for the 23 development of the park area. Council direction is needed to determine how much credit 24 should be given to the developer. • 25 26 Councilmember Carlson stated it is pretty clear in the Comprehensive Plan that the City 27 will pursue open area in this area of the City. She indicated her mind is not yet made up 28 on this issue. She noted she does not believe the City has any private park areas. 29 30 Councilmember O'Donnell confirmed that the trails would also be private but connected 31 to public trails. He stated that his first impression would be to have the park area public 32 to eliminate conflicts that might arise at some point in the future. 33 34 Mr. Schoenbauer stated park placement should be based on serving the public. He 35 encouraged the Council to think of the parks as a system. A private park will only serve a 36 small percentage of the population. The City could then be faced with the burden of 37 maintaining the park without the park serving the public as a whole. Modifications could 38 be made to the plan to enable the park area to serve all residents. If the Council feels this 39 type of park is an amenity to the City, the City could use park dedication fees with some 40 strings attached. 41 42 City Planner Smyser advised staff is not saying the park area should not be included in 43 the plan. Staff is saying that the park does not serve the public well. 44 45 Mayor Bergeson stated he looks at the park area as an amenity to the owners of the 46 homes in that development. He stated he believes the park area should remain private. If 47 the park area remains public, it could be years before the park is developed due to lack of • 48 funds.